New rule called obstacle to wind power

Advocates say regulation will impede shift to key clean power technology in the Empire State

ALBANY — Gov. David Paterson has ambitious renewable energy goals for New York state — most of which he is trying to meet by encouraging the construction of large wind turbines.

But wind farm advocates say that a new regulation adopted less than two weeks ago by the state Public Service Commission may severely curtail future construction of large-scale commercial wind farms in upstate New York.

The rule requires that developers of new renewable energy projects in New York study whether there is enough transmission line capacity to handle the additional power their projects will create.

It also requires developers to study whether or not their project is merely replacing an existing source of renewable energy such as a hydro plant.

The issue is one of geography and weather in the Empire State. Most of the wind resources in New York are available upstate in places like the North Country and areas around Buffalo.

Most of the power is needed in New York City and Long Island — but the state doesn't have enough transmission lines to get the power downstate. This lack of capacity causes bottlenecks — like a traffic jam — and the power can't get where it is needed.

The wind industry says it shouldn't have to pay to study these potential transmission issues and that it will cause undue uncertainty. They say the PSC could potentially reject their projects based on the study findings. The rule applies to wind farms rated at 80 megawatts or larger. Each megawatt can power about 300 homes.

"It's ridiculous, it's not helpful at all," Carol Murphy, executive director of the Alliance for Clean Energy New York, said of the new rule. "It sends a very, very bad message. What it tells people to do is try to avoid the PSC."

Murphy says the Albany-based trade group, which represents wind developers, is weighing its options — potentially some sort of appeal or legal action.

"That's under active discussion," she said.

Of course the PSC, which approved the rule at its Oct. 15 meeting without debate, doesn't see it that way and doesn't believe it will deter wind development in the state.

Diane Barney, a utility supervisor at the PSC, says that the so-called "energy deliverability" studies will be treated as just one more piece of information that the commission requires for approval. Other aspects include environmental and historical impacts that the wind farms will have on the communities where they are built.

"We already get a plethora of information," Barney said. "It's just one more piece of the puzzle. I don't think you're going to see a project live or die from this information."

Barney said that the commission wants to take a closer look at how each renewable energy project fits into the state's transmission system because previous studies on wind power may have overestimated how much the system can handle considering the bottlenecks and where the turbines were likely to have been built. The state can't afford to build a lot of new wind farms — which get subsidies from the state — only to find out that the power can't go anywhere, she said.

"We want to know about that all ahead of time," she said.

Companies that own existing hydro plants are happy with the transmission study requirements, including Brookfield Renewable Power, a Toronto company that owns 70 hydro plants in New York state. The hydro plant owners argue that output from large wind farms can actually block out their power from the transmission system.

"The decision reinforces the fact that it is not in the public's interest to permit construction of new renewable generation if it cannot be delivered to where the power is needed or if it displaces existing, proven generation," said Julie Smith-Galvin, a Brookfield spokeswoman.

But wind developers are not so optimistic about the new rules. Patrick Doyle, president of NorthWind and Power, an Albany-based wind development company that focuses on small-scale community projects, says that the new studies could cost between $100,000 and $250,000.

Doyle wrote the PSC back in August that wind developers actually started moving investment out of New York state in 2008 when the commission signaled during its approval of a wind farm in Clinton County called Marble River Wind Farm that it would ask for the studies in the future.

"Construction of wind projects in New York has slowed dramatically and turbines that might have been installed in this state are now spinning in states such as Indiana and further west," Doyle wrote.

Horizon Wind Energy, the company developing the project, has yet to begin construction. The company declined comment on the issue.

Paul Copleman, a spokesman for Iberdrola Renewables, a company with 1,000 megawatts of wind power projects in the pipeline in New York, says the new regulations may create too much risk for wind companies.

"The order is not detailed enough to give a wind project developer any direction with regard to analyzing the impact of adding a new renewable power source to the grid — and that uncertainty is a problem," he said.

Larry Rulison can be reached at 454-5504 or by e-mail at lrulison@timesunion.com.